Bubbles all the way for me. She danced on the field, and had a bit more sexual energy. Crazy Lady has given a fantastic effort, please don’t misunderstand me, I love her as well. But Bubbles…that was something. She somehow was able to steal the entire halftime show, danced at the 50 yard line. There will never be another Bubbles, her sudden retirement was as shocking as Michael Jordan’s. God willing, she will return.
At 9:43 you can see Bubbles do her thing.
You lost me at “sexual energy”.
At Fanfest last fall, we were on the field supporting my son who was with the marching band. There was (I presume) an octogenarian near us who kept looking at all of us and yelling “Where’s the Crazy Lady? Where’s the Crazy Lady?” as if somehow our collective demand could muster her (and her sexual energy?) there for his personal entertainment. Weird flex.
That’s too bad Crazy Lady wasn’t invited. I feel we should support the traditions we have. Instead we seem to discourage them or try new things that don’t catch on.
I vaguely remember Bubbles, and am quite familiar with Crazy Lady. I recently discovered that I know members of her immediate family.
I’ve been at a few away games in the last 20+ years, in which Crazy Lady came with family and friends, scoped the situation, and determined whether her act would work in the current location.
The best was a Utah State game, perhaps 15-18 years ago in Logan. There was a big enough Utah crowd at the game, all in the isolated visitor section, without many local fans at all, so that she felt she could get away with her act. She danced at a break in the game, and I’m sure had somehow enlisted the cooperation of the band - she was definitely a hit with the Ute fans, that night, and with the whole audience to a larger degree than you would think.
And yes, the people who make such decision, have wanted to get rid of her for years, in favor of the drum thing and countless other gimmicks that have long since failed.
Football game chants, cheers, songs, marching band, etc. should have something to do with tradition, and fan popularity/support, not be constantly in jeopardy of replacement by the latest marketing vendor, selected by the latest athletic director’s think tank, or videos from the uniform vendor, or NBA/NFL style audio, etc. etc. etc…
They’re not doing that sort of tradition replacement in Tuscaloosa, Ann Arbor, Columbus, South Bend, Austin, Norman, Lincoln, at the Colosseum, Gainesville, Auburn, College Station. Those places understand the value of tradition, and while they try other things, in small ways, they retain the traditions for the large part.
As an example, how many of the current decision makers do you think even know what the “U of U Expansion” is, much less how it was historically used as a lead in to the opening horn of a Utah Men’s Basketball game. I’ve been watching that tune performed, with precision, by the pep band at the beginning of basketball games for most of a lifetime, but it was recently replaced by the NBA style light, fire, and (monster truck) screaming “show”. Now, I think it’s relegated to the intro to the second half…
Somebody should go ask the band director what U of U Expansion is, and how it has been historically used…
There is a lot more to the end of Crazy Lady than is being portrayed.
It’s not my place to tell, but safe to say, as with all things, there’s another side to the story.
(Side note, I think there’s a lot of people who would argue with the idea that she’s a tradition)
I’ve met Crazy Lady. I talk to her virtually every home game at the tailgate lot. She is a very nice person. I don’t understand the people who hate her.
I can’t think of anything else that has lasted 20 years but still isn’t considered a tradition. Actually, I can’t think of any “tradition” associated with U football that is 20+ years old…maybe light the U? Not even sure that is.
Utah's dancing 'Crazy Lady' owns her title - Sports Illustrated
Great read on Crazy Lady, it’s not often the U of U gets free publicity from a national publication.
I don’t understand why there would be anything other than appreciation for a fan who gets propped up as a super fan. Jealousy? Wild Bill up in Logan is another example. He brought national attention to their little basketball program and millions of views on YouTube. But some of their fans want him to go away. I don’t understand.
I was having lunch at the Gourmandise in Draper yesterday, when I saw a familiar face. It took a minute to remember where I knew her from, but soon remembered that face was familiar to all Ute football fans; it belongs to Crazy Lady.
I spoke with her, got an update on how she and her husband are doing, and took the following photo to post on the site. I got to know them a bit during the 90’s and early 2000’s when they often attended away games, and there were not nearly as many of us doing so in those days. More than once, her husband played her theme song on a giant boom box while she did her usual dancing act in the Ute fan section of away games. It was great fun seeing her act on the road, watching how it annoyed home fans, and watching the two of them (with help from the rest of the Ute fan section) try to avoid being tossed from the game by the home security team.
A delightful lady! She passes on a warm hello, and best wishes to all Ute fans.
Edit to say: I still don’t know why the athletic department put an end to her act, and don’t really want to reopen that disagreement. But she did say that she had a great 25 year run.
I think that was a mistake by the athletic department. The MUSS and the band loved her.
Don’t want to open it back up, but I think the ‘free publicity’ wasn’t staying free - rumors were there were some demands/asks and the athletic dept balked. Stupid - I think some perks could have been fine, but some in power wanted to move on. Sometimes traditions tied to specific people get more complicated than traditions that can happen while rotating people. The drum thing was a stupid replacement and bad tradition overall.
Hey, you never know - maybe he was 13 years old when Bubbles was distracting beleaguered Ute fans when the team was terrible.
It’s like this bit from a comedian:
“Now that I’m 40 years old, my wife wants a baby, she’s ‘encouraging’ me in the bedroom. Even my mom is involved in the cheerleading. Where was this interest when I was a teenager? When I was 13 years old I could make a woman pregnant through my snow pants!!!”
I’m missing lot living in California and not attending Utah games. I didn’t know about either woman until reading this thread.
Get your butt to SLC, we’ll find you a ticket.
Deal?